Neurodegeneration News and Research

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Neurodegeneration is the umbrella term for the progressive loss of structure or function of neurons, including death of neurons.

Study shows how dietary restriction impacts autophagy in intestine to increase lifespan

Dietary restriction, or limited food intake without malnutrition, has beneficial effects on longevity in many species, including humans. A new study from the Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute (SBP), published today in PLoS Genetics, represents a major advance in understanding how dietary restriction leads to these advantages.

15 Jul 2016

JAD announces recipient of 2016 Alzheimer Award

The Journal of Alzheimer's Disease is pleased to announce that Mark W. Bondi, PhD, ABPP/CN, Professor of Psychiatry at UC San Diego and Director of the Neuropsychological Assessment Unit at the VA San Diego Healthcare System, has been chosen as the recipient of the 2016 Alzheimer Award presented by the journal in recognition of his outstanding work on the development of a novel and promising method of staging preclinical Alzheimer's disease (AD) based on number of abnormal biomarkers that is predictive of progression to mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and AD.

15 Jul 2016

VIB research reveals new insights into ALS

Research into amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) conducted by VIB-KU Leuven has led to interesting and unexpected conclusions.

14 Jul 2016

Researchers reveal molecular mechanism of autophagy initiation

Researchers revealed that Atg13 links autophagy initiation factors to each other using a string-like conformation, thereby promoting the association of diverse elements of the autophagy initiation machinery, initiating autophagosome formation through the recruitment of Atg9 vesicles and phosphorylation of various Atg factors.

12 Jul 2016

TBI with LOC linked to late-life neurodegeneration but not Alzheimer's disease

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) with a loss of consciousness (LOC) may be associated with later development of Parkinson's disease but not Alzheimer's disease or incident dementia, according to a study conducted at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and the University of Washington School of Medicine.

11 Jul 2016

Researchers identify potential biomarker for Parkinson's disease in biobanked urine samples

For more than five years, urine and cerebral-spinal fluid samples from patients with Parkinson's disease have been locked in freezers in the NINDS National Repository, stored with the expectation they might someday help unravel the still-hidden course of this slow-acting neurodegenerative disease.

6 Jul 2016

Deuteration offers alternative chorea treatment for Huntington disease patients

Treatment with a deuterated form of tetrabenazine has resulted in improved motor signs among patients with Huntington disease, making it a potential treatment for chorea, trial findings show.

6 Jul 2016

Breakthrough research could lead to new drugs to improve heart attack outcomes

A research advance from the Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute and Stanford University could lead to new drugs that minimize the damage caused by heart attacks.

30 Jun 2016

New technology could help deliver treatments for brain injuries

A new study led by scientists at the Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute describes a technology that could lead to new therapeutics for traumatic brain injuries. The discovery, published today in Nature Communications, provides a means of homing drugs or nanoparticles to injured areas of the brain.

29 Jun 2016

Scientists discover link between two genes involved in PD and autoimmune diseases

A study publish in the journal CELL indicates that two genes associated with Parkinson's disease (PD) are key regulators of the immune system, providing direct evidence linking Parkinson's to autoimmune disease.

27 Jun 2016

Mutant fruit flies provide insight into origins of Parkinson's disease

The neurodegeneration that occurs in Parkinson’s disease is a result of stress on the endoplasmic reticulum in the cell rather than failure of the mitochondria as previously thought, according to a study in fruit flies.

24 Jun 2016

New study suggests how rod photoreceptors may have originated to give rise to nocturnal mammals

Retinas from our earliest vertebrate ancestors had cone-like photoreceptors, presumably allowing them to see in daylight, but little ability to see at night. Then, millions of years ago in the Mesozoic era, and in relatively short order, mammals emerged that had retinas with predominantly rod photoreceptors, allowing for them to see at night perhaps to hunt for food while their dinosaur predators were dozing.

22 Jun 2016

Complex 36-point therapeutic personalized program can help reverse memory loss in early AD patients

Results from quantitative MRI and neuropsychological testing show unprecedented improvements in ten patients with early Alzheimer's disease (AD) or its precursors following treatment with a programmatic and personalized therapy. Results from an approach dubbed metabolic enhancement for neurodegeneration are now available online in the journal Aging.

16 Jun 2016

Researchers find new method to replicate one of earliest changes in Alzheimer’s disease

Researchers at the Babraham Institute have found a way to replicate one of the earliest changes in Alzheimer's disease in a dish. This means that it should now be possible to find out a lot more about why it happens - and how to stop it. The new findings are published in the journal Molecular Neurodegeneration and supported by the charity Alzheimer's Research UK.

15 Jun 2016

New imaging study links tau proteins to neurodegenerative pathology of Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's is a devastating and incurable disease marked by beta-amyloid and tau protein aggregations in the brain, yet the direct relationship between these proteins and neurodegeneration has remained a mystery.

14 Jun 2016

Measuring specific proteins in blood samples may help track progression of dementias

Reliable information can be obtained on the progression of dementias by measuring specific proteins in the blood and cerebrospinal fluid. A test of this kind is especially significant to the development of new therapies, as reported in the journal Neuron by scientists from the University of Basel and University Hospital Basel, along with international colleagues.

10 Jun 2016

NMNAT2 enzyme may help protect against debilitating effects of neurodegenerative disorders

A study led by biomedical researchers at Indiana University has found evidence that an enzyme known as NMNAT2 may help protect against the debilitating effects of certain degenerative brain diseases, including Alzheimer's.

3 Jun 2016

New dietary supplement can prevent, reverse massive brain cell loss

A dietary supplement containing a blend of thirty vitamins and minerals--all natural ingredients widely available in health food stores--has shown remarkable anti-aging properties that can prevent and even reverse massive brain cell loss, according to new research from McMaster University.

3 Jun 2016

New player in calcium signalling pathways acts as molecular brake to Orai activation

Information flow in cells relies on calcium as a key agent in several signalling pathways. Calcium dependent signalling is crucial in nearly every aspect of life - muscle movement, immune reactions, nerve function, light sensing and many such processes.

28 May 2016

Research sheds new light on biological processes underlying neurodegeneration in AD

Progranulin is a central protein in both neuronal survival and neurodegenerative diseases. It is thus not surprising that altered progranulin levels represent a universal theme shared across several common neurodegenerative diseases.

26 May 2016